Xiaomi M365 Review – Best Budget Electric Scooter under $500

Key Features

Pros vs Cons

Xiaomi Electric Scooter M365 Overview

You may have heard about the Xiaomi electric scooter, which is one of the 2019 or even 2020 most popular adult scooters for commuting to work or traveling short distances around the community.

It’s more appealing for people who don’t want to spend over 500 bucks on a test to the scooter world, for its entry-level features and very budget price. Made in China doesn’t mean a lack of quality.

In 2019, the company announced an upgraded version – Xiaomi Electric Scooter Pro, with a few better performances, and we’ll compare these two models in features and specs, helping you make the decision on which one is better.

Power Performance – Good for Its Price

Motor and Speed

The Xiaomi M365 is a motorized electric scooter, but not a powerful option. Packed with a 250W brushless DC motor that will provide up to 500W output power at peak, the M365 scooter is able to reach a top speed of 15.5 mph. This speed is very moderate and street-legalized for riding an electric scooter on bike lanes or sidewalks.

This Chinese manufacturer – Xiaomi, did not intend to add any outstanding features to its products. So it’s very understandable that Xiaomi M365 electric scooter does not feature a powerful motor to be a very high-speed e scooter.

Acceleration

It takes about 5.5 seconds to accelerate the Xiaomi M365 scooter from stillness to 15 mph. This is controlled by experienced riders. For beginners, the scooter is limited with a gentle acceleration taking more time to reach the maximum speed of 11.2 mph. The discrepancy is very friendly for novices to give the Xiaomi scooter a shot.

Climbing Hills

The ability to climb hills or steep streets is very relevant to the motor size and power. As you can imagine, the climbing ability of the Xiaomi M365 electric scooter is not as good as those 1000W- or 2000W- motorized products.

The manufacturer boasts of the Xiaomi M365 will go up 14-degree hills. However, many users complain the scooter is difficult to go up hills and kills battery quickly if climbing slopes with an adult around 200 pounds on it.

You can’t blame this for the Xiaomi M365 scooter, as it’s really budget compared to most models on the market. 

Battery and Range

Xiaomi M365 electric scooter is great for medium and short-distance commutes. The batteries of Xiaomi M365 are provided by LG, a well-known lithium battery manufacturer, especially for their own smartphones.

Packed with 30 x 18650 lithium battery units, along with the unique smart power management, the M365 scooter performs well to travel up to 18.6 miles on a single charge. This range is an excellent option for people who need a convenient personal transportation device for short commutes, even though is not as competitive as those long-mileage scootering models.

Getting the Xiaomi M365 scooter to full of juice takes about 5 hours. This is not a long time. You can even do this at the office you use the scooter to commute a long distance. However, you don’t need to charge it every day if you ride it for a 5-mile commute.

Ride Quality

Tires

Featuring two 8.5-inch inflatable rubber tires on the front and rear, the Xiaomi M365 electric scooter delivers a smooth riding experience. 8.5-inch tires are not large, at least not as large as those big-wheeled scooters with 10-inch or larger tires, but still good enough to have great shock absorption.

Making full use of the anti-slip treads on the tire surface, this scooter can handle various environments – Cement, asphalt, flat soil pavements, or even bumps, thanks to its skills to climb hills of 14-degree.

Brakes

The Xiaomi M365 electric scooter does not ride at a top speed, but it still features a disc braking and eABS regenerative anti-lock braking system for an efficient stop when need. The responsive braking 13.1 feet distance ensures your safety as soon as possible if any urgency happens.

Build Quality

Design

Xiaomi M365 is a modern- and minimalist-designed electric scooter, which has received several international awards – the prestigious Red Dot “Best of the Best” Award, and the iF Design Award 2017. The company took simplicity into consideration and made the entire scooter look simple and clean. 

You can only see the whole body consisting of major body parts, like the frame, the pedal, two big tires with fenders, a small kickstand and a compact head that includes the basic elements: two anti-slip handles, a small bell with the battery display connecting to the frame. No additional wires tangle outside the scooter’s body.

Waterproof

With IP54-rated water-resistance materials to protect its motor and primary parts, the Xiaomi M365 electric scooter can be used in rainy weather. But you should pay attention not to drive it in any flood water situation, after all, the fourth level of water resistance is only helpful to avoid splashes and drops, not even a jet case is allowed.

Lights

The scooter has a large and bright headlight and red taillights, ensuring you can safely ride the scooter at night. By the way, the red taillights flash distinctly while braking to warn other pedestrians and vehicles on the road.

Portability

The frame is made of aerospace-grade aluminum, making the Xiaomi electric scooter look high-quality and lightweight, at only 26.9 pounds (approx. 12.5 kg). It’s a foldable electric scooter with a 3-second or 3-step folding mechanism. This means you can always store it under your work desk or find a corner for storage. Two colors – white and black, are available for choices for men and women people. 

Weight Limit

220 pounds (about 100 kg) is not a high capacity, but a common max load of most cheap electric scooters you can buy. This weight limit covers most adults in the US, but there are some models available for heavy people if you want one.

Who is Xiaomi Scooter for

People who want a cheap electric scooter for adults commuting within a medium and short distance trip, or those commuters who need to change to public transportation and need a last-mile solution from bus/train stop to the office. Or anyone who just wants to have a try of some entry-level scooters to start the micro-mobility, which is the most popular way among youths under age 17 and adults in the (rather wide) 18-50 age demographics among adults.

As an upgraded version of Xiaomi M365, the Pro electric scooter has a variety of impressive improvements. The bigger 300W brushless motor makes it easy for riders to accelerate for a faster speed in a shorter time.

However, the load capacity and ability to climb hills are not upgraded this time. The climbing hills skills of Xiaomi Electric Scooter Pro even does not perform as well as its predecessor: Xiaomi M365 can climb 14% slopes via the Pro is only capable of 12% slopes. 

The Pro can go for a longer distance – up to 45 km (around 28 miles) over 18.6 miles for Xiaomi M365, making this dockless scooter a great option for short-trips in urban areas. Especially for those commuters who live not far from their offices-many within 5 miles, you don’t need to charge the scooter every day. It’s a bit frustrating to wait for 8-9 hours to fully charge the Xiaomi Electric Scooter Pro, taking 2-3 hours longer than the M365 model’s 5 hours charging time.

Both the M365 and Pro models support connecting to the Xiaomi app to view ride statics of the scooter’s usages, such as the remaining power and real-time status like the current riding speed. But the Pro scooter provides a direct way to view these things via the display on the handlebar, while you can only view the battery status on the display of Xiaomi M365 scooter.

The power button on the right uses an obvious red color, making it easier for riders to press and control. The ring bell is painted in black color without any freaky feeling that you’ll have in the M365 model of white ring bell on a primary black body.

Alternatives for Xiaomi Scooters

Thanks to the rapid growth of ride-sharing programs like Lime and Bird, more and more people try to ride dockless electric scooters for short-trip options. Accordingly, more and more companies enter into this scooter industry and you’ll find a variety of scooters with similar features and same-level price ranges.

We have made a list of cheap electric scooters under $500, including the electric kick scooters, hoverboards, and some battery-powered two-wheelers with a seat. Here, we would like to introduce several typical products as alternatives for Xiaomi electric scooters.

E-scooter	Price	Motor	Speed	Range	Incline	Capacity	Weight	Waterproof	Tire
GOTRAX XR Ultra	$399	300W	15.5 mph	18 miles	15°	220 lb.	27 lb.	IP54	8.5″
Segway ES2	$569	300W	15.5 mph	15.5 miles	10%	220 lb.	28 lb.	IP54	8″
Hiboy S2	$429	350W	15.5 mph	20 miles	–	260 lb.	30 lb.	–	8.5″
Hover-1 Engine	$400	350W	16 mph	11 miles	–	280 lb.	27 lb.	–	10″
Glion Dolly	$499	250W	15 mph	15 miles	–	255 lb.	28 lb.	–	8.5″